Adriana Kraft

When it's time to heat things up...

LGBT

Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to spend this day alone. #MFRWHook #EroticRomance #LGBTQ

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The millennium arrived with such promise—will it deliver for recently widowed Merry Delaney?

Welcome to Book Hooks, a Wednesday offering by members of Marketing For Romance Writers to share a little taste of our work and entice you into wanting more! Click on the links at the end to travel to other Book Hook posts, and enjoy!

EXCERPT

Since Friday night will usher in the new year, we’re sharing a snippet from The Merry Widow, which opens on New Year’s Eve:

Prologue

New Year’s Eve 1999
Four AM
Glencoe, Illinois

It was starting. Merry had awakened to her alarm, brewed the coffee, warmed up her favorite pastry, and now sat curled up on her living room couch wrapped in her plush bathrobe and focused on the TV screen, where the Samoans had just begun to welcome in the new year. Her favorite channel would be live for the next twenty-four hours, tracking the celebrations—or lack of—as the world turned toward the new millennium.

The Millennium. Y2K. She was so tired of all the doomsday hype—as an accountant, she’d had ample advance notice to bring all her software up to date to accommodate the changeover. People were treating it as if it might be the end of the world—hardly, even if her world had ended.

Maybe she could glean at least a small shred of inspiration from the rest of the world. How did you pick up and move on when everything you knew had changed? Tomorrow would be one year—to the day—since Dan had died. She shuddered. Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to spend this day alone.

BLURB

So much for all the anticipation about the new millennium. Merry Delaney’s life is still in a rut and shows no signs of changing. Sex? A fading memory, gone long before her husband actually died. Excitement? Hardly the hallmark of an accountant’s life. At forty-two, what can she look forward to?

Until her best friend takes Merry’s predicament into her practiced hands. One passionate kiss unleashes possibilities Merry never dreamed of—and she wants to sample them all. Men? Women? Young? Old? Ménage? Toys? Yes, to all, to pleasure, to making up for lost time.

Enter Chicago Detective Jim Barnes, who solicits Merry’s help with a mob funds-skimming case. Can the scorching passion that soon smolders between Merry and Jim survive the escalating mob threats of exposure? Having discovered a zest for sex, will Merry ever again be satisfied with one man?

REVIEW

Wow, what an incredible book! Not only is The Merry Widow a gripping romantic suspense, but the heat level is hotter than Death Valley… The ending took me by surprise and I was a little sad to see it end. I grew attached to the characters and wanted to stay in their world a little bit longer. The Merry Widow will be on my keeper shelf and one I will be re-reading again and again. Highly recommend!   N. N. Light

BUY LINKS

Amazon   Kobo   Barnes & Noble   Extasy Books

Apple    Google Play

Goodreads     BookBub

“You must be very special.” Santa’s Boss #FFM #EroticRomance #HolidayBook #MFRWhook

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Joy Danser has believed in Santa since childhood—now Nick Polaris and his Gypsy lover show her Santa can deliver an adult package beyond her wildest dreams!

Welcome to Book Hooks, a Wednesday offering by members of Marketing For Romance Writers to share a little taste of our work and entice you into wanting more! Click on the links at the end to travel to other Book Hook posts, and enjoy!

Today we’re featuring another of our Holiday novellas, Santa’s Boss – a paranormal encounter with a very adult Santa!

EXCERPT

“You say this phantom came to you while you were having sex with your boyfriend.”

Joy nodded across the tiny round table at Sophia Nardiz. She couldn’t believe she was having this conversation, but how could she expect the woman to help if she didn’t know what had happened? “Yes. He entered me from behind while I had Ted in my mouth.”

“Interesting. And you never said anything to your boyfriend.”

Trying not to scratch at her eyes, Joy inhaled the rich incense filling the room. “I didn’t know what to tell him.” She realized that must sound lame.

Sophia pushed back dark tresses of hair from her shoulder. She smiled as if she knew a secret. “Have you ever had two cocks before?”

Blanching, Joy shook her head.

“And this visitor claimed to be Santa Claus.”

“That’s right. I felt his beard and mustache.” Joy shuddered.

“I’m sure you did. You look quite pleased with the memory.”

“I must be crazy,” Joy wailed. “You must think I’m nuts for sure.”

“Don’t say that, girl.” Sophia cradled Joy’s hand, and Joy experienced an immediate calm spreading over her body. “What you describe is quite plausible.” Sophia smiled thinly. “You have too many aches—pleasant aches—for this to be something only in your mind. It could be someone with psychokinetic and telepathic powers. Rare, but not impossible. I have known persons with such powers.”

“You don’t think I’m crazy.”

“Not at all. I believe you must be very special to have received such a gift.”

BLURB

Always authentic, Assistant Mall Manager Joy Danser insists that her mall Santas must have real beards so children can believe. But even she is unprepared for the very real Santa who visits her bed invisibly this Christmas season. Is she dreaming, or has she gone mad? Joy consults Sophia Nardiz, manager of the Magical Gypsy shop at her mall. Sophia reads her palm and gives her a cryptic message: Joy is at a crossroads, and she must trust her intuition.

Owner of the Magical Gypsy chain and a true Gypsy himself, Nick Polaris is thrilled to play Joy’s Santa, in the mall and in her bed, but he knows it’s only a lark. For true love, he’ll need someone with Gypsy blood. Must he renounce the Scottish redhead he enjoys so much?

BUY LINKS

Amazon    Barnes & Noble

Kobo    Extasy Books

Scandal and Shame: Through the Lens #EroticRomance #Menage #MFRWsteam

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Welcome to the MFRW Steam Hop – where authors of erotic romance share their spicy excerpts to entertain and entice. Don’t forget to click on the links at the bottom to travel to the other marvelous participating authors!

About Our Story

Does your family history contain scandal? Ours does, as recently as my mother’s grandfather, who was born a bastard in an era when that status carried far more stigma than now. His mother – a logger’s daughter who served as a camp cook – was shunned and shamed for much of her life. On the other side, my husband’s grandfather was a bigamist. A threshing crew foreman in the early 1900s, he married and had children in Missouri, then married again in Kansas. My husband’s grandmother divorced him when she learned of the other family; their son, my husband’s father, was ten years old.

We blessed—or perhaps cursed—our Through the Lens heroine with elements of these scandals. Naturally, she’s heard some of the stories. Through the Lens chronicles her struggle with these long-forgotten roots. Will she claim them, or run the other way?

Blurb

Prairie roots can be deceptive. Will Ellen Jeffers cling to the sedate past that’s familiar, or will she embrace a different version of her history—one that includes tragedy, scandal, fortitude, and freedom?

It’s 2002, and South Dakota third grade teacher Ellen Jeffers has signed up for a photography summer course and assistantship at an art academy in Minneapolis. Thirty-three, divorced for nearly a decade from her college boyfriend, she’s not seeking major change. She just hopes the course will enhance her teaching skills and her resume.

Aaron Brewster comes from privilege, and he has used that status to flaunt his family’s values and carve out a successful career as a photographer specializing in black and white erotic portraiture. Has he ever loved? His love is for beauty, sensuality, eroticism. His new uptight teaching assistant will never fit that vision. Should he send her packing? For reasons he cannot fathom, he takes her on as a challenge.

Aaron’s frontal assault shocks Ellen, but it also triggers something deep inside she’s never been willing to acknowledge. Is her beloved prairie a safe refuge, or will it become a crucible for transformation? The choice is not merely Ellen’s.

Buy Links

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Through-Lens-Adriana-Kraft-ebook/dp/B08BZXMNNW/

Barnes & Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/through-the-lens-adriana-kraft/1137261501?ean=2940164557683

Kobo https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/through-the-lens-5   

Extasy https://www.extasybooks.com/978-1-4874-2955-3-through-the-lens/

GoodReads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54475455-through-the-lens

Reviews and Endorsements for Adriana Kraft Books

Wow, what an incredible book! Not only is The Merry Widow a gripping, romantic suspense but the heat level is hotter than Death Valley… The ending took me by surprise and I was a little sad to see it end. I grew attached to the characters and wanted to stay in their world a little bit longer. The Merry Widow will be on my keeper shelf and one I will be re-reading again and again. Highly recommend!   N. N. Light

Their romance is hot in all the right places…If you love romance with more than two people, you’re going to love this book! Seducing Cat is a must read! The TBR Pile

Filled with warmth, blazing hot sex, well-developed characters and an interesting plot…not for the faint of heart.  If you are looking for an interesting story filled with scorching hot erotica, author Adriana Kraft’s novel Vegas Gambler is the book for you. Romance Junkies

Ms. Kraft has a gift for pleasing the reader with vivid imagery and erotic language. Fasten your seat belts – Cherry Tune-Up is one hot ride that you don’t want to miss. Romance Junkies

Definitely recommended The Reunion sizzled as two incredibly sexy women and one gorgeous guy form a super hot triad, eventually. These three are by far and away the best smoldering trio I have read about. Oh, bring on more of this, but read this one first!  Rainbow Reviews

Excerpt

Tina never spoke a word. She half perched on the stool and raised her arms above her head with a fan in each hand, then held that pose and pouted at the class.

“Remember to look through your cameras,” Aaron said. “This isn’t a strip show.”

Ellen gasped and ducked behind her camera. By the time she had Tina in focus, Tina had placed the fans in one hand by her side, and her other hand was tucked in under her robe, probably covering a breast. Ellen swallowed as she heard cameras clicking around her. Tina smiled at her as she snapped a picture.

Ellen tried to breathe as Tina worked through a series of poses showing leg, lifting her long black hair above her head, sliding a hand suggestively under the robe and up a thigh.

Tina’s eyes sparkled. She stuck her tongue out at the group before turning to face away from them. Slowly the robe slid down to her waist. Tina held that pose as cameras clicked, and then the robe fell to the floor.

Ellen inhaled sharply as Tina bent over the stool, showing off a tight rump and sculpted thighs and legs. Before she could focus, Tina had moved a fan to shield her butt from view. There was a groan from the class.

“Sometimes subtle is more erotic,” Aaron pointed out. “And sometimes not.”

Tina turned around to face the group with the fan hiding her loins. Her long hair hid one breast. The other stood free and open to view. Its nipple stood at attention. Tina teased it with a strand of hair.

Ellen focused her lens on the nipple until it nearly filled her viewfinder.

“Goodness,” she muttered under her breath. It was as if the nipple winked at her. It was still tightening. Did that fleshy nodule know it had her entire attention? She clicked off several shots. Her own nipples were straining.

“You doing okay?”

She didn’t trust herself to take her attention off the camera to look at Aaron.

Would you be shocked? Ellen was…#NewRelease #Erotic Romance #MFRWsteam

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Welcome to the MFRW Steam Hop! If you like your romance hot and spicy, this is the place for you. Click on the graphic to link to all the steamy posts.

Through the Lens by Adriana Kraft

~ Erotic Menage Romance ~

We thought we’d share a little about how this book came to be. Are you a fan of Impressionist art? We are, and when we lived in Minnesota, we spent a day at the Minneapolis Institute of Art exploring its collection.

We want you to put yourself in the mind of our character, Ellen Jeffers – a third grade teacher from the plains of South Dakota – when she walks into one of the exhibit rooms and sees this painting, Caillebotte’s Nude on a Couch – six feet wide and a little over four feet tall.

You’re right, she freaks. Not a good thing. She’s in the middle of a tour conducted by the art academy teacher she’s assisting for the summer. And she doesn’t keep her mouth shut. In front of him and their students. Here’s the scene:

EXCERPT

“Isn’t that the most lewd, despicable painting you’ve ever seen?”

Aaron looked up sharply from his notes. He hadn’t even begun to talk about one of his favorite Impressionist paintings—Caillebotte’s Nude on a Couch.

Ellen was standing with her arms crossed under her breasts, glaring with disdain at the painting.

“What’s your problem, Ms. Jeffers?” He’d purposely called her Ms. Jeffers to try to snap her out of her tirade, but with little success.

“It’s so huge. The woman is begging for attention, for sex. The painting must be life size. No wonder it’s under glass. Someone might claw it to pieces.”

Aaron gulped, trying to hold himself in check. Who would even think of such a thing happening? “This is one of Caillebotte’s most famous paintings. We’re quite fortunate to have it here.”

“I’ve never heard of Caillebotte. He must be a third rank Impressionist.”

“Well, you’re wrong, Ms. Jeffers.” Aaron saw Tina grab Ellen’s arm to warn her, but Ellen pulled away. “Caillebotte was not only an impressionist of the first rank—it was through his financial support and considerable influence that the group was able to attain recognition and stature in its own time. What is your problem? We looked at other nudes in the last corridor, and you didn’t begin to flip out.”

Looking at least somewhat chastened, Ellen sniffed, seemingly unable or unwilling to let it drop. “The others weren’t in our face. She’s too bold. Good grief, she’s playing with a nipple. She’s trying to seduce us.” Her eyes widened. “She must’ve been a prostitute. Only such women would’ve posed like that during that era of French history.”

“And you know that for a fact?”

“It was the custom of the time. Upper-class women wouldn’t go out unchaperoned.”

“Do tell.” He gathered himself as best he could. “That might’ve been the norm at the time, but even the upper class of the Victorian era had its libertine members. There are plenty of accounts in England and France of upper-class ladies being escorted to a rendezvous with a paramour by a maid or manservant. After successfully completing her liaison, the woman would be escorted back to her house to await her husband as he returned from another lover’s arms. Does that upset your sensibilities, Ms. Jeffers?”

To her credit, Ellen kept her lips tightly sealed and this time did not shake off Tina’s supporting hand. She shook her head, but he knew everyone knew she was lying. According to what he knew, the woman in the portrait had become Caillebotte’s mistress. There remained some debate whether she’d been a prostitute. Many models of that period were, but he wasn’t about to let Ellen know he was aware of that. “Our reclining nude might’ve been a woman of the working class trying to put food on the table. Had you thought of that possibility?”

BUY LINKS

Extasy Books  Amazon

BLURB

Prairie roots can be deceptive. Will Ellen Jeffers cling to the sedate past that’s familiar, or will she embrace a different version of her history—one that includes tragedy, scandal, fortitude, and freedom?

It’s 2002, and South Dakota third grade teacher Ellen Jeffers has signed up for a photography summer course and assistantship at an art academy in Minneapolis. Thirty-three, divorced from her college boyfriend for nearly a decade, she’s not seeking major change. She just hopes the course will enhance her teaching skills and her resume.

Aaron Brewster comes from privilege, and he has used that status to flaunt his family’s values and carve out a successful career as a photographer specializing in black and white erotic portraiture. Has he ever loved? His love is for beauty, sensuality, eroticism. His new uptight teaching assistant will never fit that vision. Should he send her packing? For reasons he cannot fathom, he takes her on as a challenge.

Aaron’s frontal assault shocks Ellen, but it also triggers something deep inside she’s never been willing to acknowledge. Is her beloved prairie a safe refuge, or will it become a crucible for transformation? The choice is not merely Ellen’s.

Out Now! Three, A Love Story #MFRWAuthor #Polyamory #Romance

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Ever fantasize about three-way ménage? How about a long-term three-way relationship? Lots of people who end up in a polyamorous relationship never entertained that fantasy – they just suddenly found themselves in love with more than one person and created a way to make it work.

Can it work in the real world? We know it can and does, and that’s the dilemma we handed to Jamie, Susan and Mason in Three A Love Story. Both bisexual and deeply in love with each other, Jamie and Susan have continued to date men casually and even on occasion enjoyed three-way sex.

But what happens when one of those liaisons triggers deeper feeling? It’s not so easy…

 

Three

A Love Story

just released at Extasy Books!

BLURB

Three lives—but how many loves?

Committed lovers for three years, Jamie and Susan are good together. Jamie knows she wants Susan in her life forever. But what if that’s not enough?

Both bi, the two have continued dating men occasionally, and now Jamie’s falling in love with Mason. Can she love two persons? Will her love for either one wrench the other one out of her life?

Jamie’s convinced a long-term three-way relationship is the answer, but none of the players are prepared for what’s coming. Two-way relationships are hard enough—is a three-way even possible? And if so, what must each of them give up to create it?

EXCERPT

Jamie eyed her partner, waiting for her to awaken. Now was the moment—she couldn’t let the subject wait any longer, even though it put her stomach in knots. Mason Johnson. It was time. Maybe past time. She steadfastly believed everything would work out for the best. Still, what she was about to propose might shake their comfy world a wee bit.

She smiled that her Irish grandmother’s voice had crept into her thoughts. Well, maybe that was why she felt so good about her future—their futures. It might require a bit of the luck of the Irish to pull off, but she just knew it could be done—if everyone simply trusted the process. She had Celtic roots. She had natural red hair…nothing fake about that. She could work her own magic. Couldn’t she?

Jamie grimaced. She wished it was so. But she’d never discovered a magic wand or a book of wizardry that would give her that kind of power. No, if her dream became real, it would require three persons working together.

She blew her waking lover a kiss. It would take three persons playing together, too.

“Hey, you,” she said softly. “Was that as good for you as it was for me?”

Three

A Love Story

available now at Extasy Books

Coming soon to other e-book vendors

 

A thirty-plus heroine and her real-life connections #MFRWAuthor

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Caitlin Shanahan is a heroine in Seducing Cat (Meghan’s Playhouse Book One). She’s thirty-four. Our plot hinges on the fact that she’s finally given up on finding a man and has decided to purchase the house of her dreams—alone.

When this book was first released, more than one reader commented that thirty-four was way too young for any woman who wanted a partner to conclude it’s too late. Maybe that’s true – certainly the age of first marriage has risen in our culture, and lots of women choose to pursue careers into their mid-thirties or beyond before committing to a romantic partner.

Choosing to wait, though, is different from giving up hope, and this is where Cat finds herself. Is that realistic? Where does it come from? The book is a novella, so we didn’t fill much space with her backstory, other than to convey that her efforts to form relationships have been unsuccessful and painful. But one of us knows those experiences at a personal level – I was in my early thirties when my first husband announced he wanted a divorce.

Though I probably never ceased hoping for love at some level, I spent the next couple years believing it would never happen for me. It wasn’t a matter of wanting to avoid pain – I had simply come to the understanding that romantic love wasn’t in my future. I had started to explore buying a condo for myself when I met Mr. Kraft at the university where we were both teaching.

For now, I’ll spare you the details of the one-year-minus-one-day that transpired between our first date and our wedding, though snippets have turned up here and there in our stories. Finding love again later in life is a trope we love to re-visit in our fiction, and so far we haven’t set an upper age limit on who we might write. We have main characters in their sixties, and even secondary characters as old as their early seventies. Love – and hot sex, since we write erotic romance – are possible as long as we live and breathe. And huzzah for that!

BLURB

What could college English Professor Caitlin Shanahan ever have in common with the brash carpenter Kurt Davis?  The sexy sprite Meghan Keenan, that’s what. 

Level headed English Professor Caitlin Shanahan has finally earned tenure and purchased the century-old two-story house of her dreams in the college town of Burntside, Wisconsin—at thirty-four, she’d better face facts: her future is teaching college and writing plays, not falling in love.  So why is she so drawn to foxy little hometown actress Meghan Keenan, who’s rented her upstairs apartment, or worse, to the girl’s gorgeous hunk of a lover Kurt Davis, a carpenter who’s never even been to college?

Twenty-year-old Meg has a plan. First she’ll seduce the reluctant professor, then she’ll share her sexual delights with both Cat and her brawny carpenter, and when she’s successfully brought them together, she can make her escape and explore what’s beyond the only town she’s ever lived in.

Kurt can’t stand the up-tight professor who’s hired him to build a gazebo and refurbish her old house—the house he wanted for himself. Even if Meg’s scheme succeeds, he knows Caitlin would never look at him twice.  No need to go there in his fantasies…